Waking to Witchcraft
by Mindmaze
Summary: Dreaming of Sunshine based fanfic. Being reborn once was discarded as a cosmic accident, being reborn a second time is a little bit more suspicious...well you know what they say, third times the charm.
1. Prologue: Lucky seven

Dreaming of Sunshine belongs to Silver Queen and Harry potter to J. K Rowling (obviously) this crossover is just me shamelessly fan servicing so enjoy!

For those of you who don't know, Dreaming of Sunshine is a Naruto self-insert and putting my totally biased opinion forward one of the best fics in that category so I suggest you read it.

…

My name is…well that is the question.

Once I went by Nara but even then I had been called something else before that.

I've had a few names by this point and it's confusing to know which fits me best, to know what name I can truly claim. Are they even me anymore? Perhaps not or perhaps each persona is just a small puzzle piece to who I really am.

At this point I can't say for certain I would know what to call myself if given the choice.

All I can tell you is who I currently am, who people think I am and for now…for now that will have to be good enough.

My last name is Weasley and I have a new story to share.

I was born March 1st 1980 alongside my twin brother Ronald. Of course I didn't know this at the time. Neither did I know that there was a war currently going on and because St Mungo's was filled with fighting casualties and my parents with justifiable paranoia I also didn't know that I was being birthed at home in my parents' bedroom.

What I did know was that I had supposedly just died in an ANBU mission, we'd been engaging in a final strike against the loose ends from a war in which my comrades and I had not long helped win.

What I also knew was that this was not the first time I had been reborn.

Unlike the last time there was no panic, at least not after I realized what was going on. The comforting darkness was not something I could forget.

A mixture of disbelief (horror) that it could be happening again as well as a mild 'Oh shit, oh shit, why, why WHY?" was all that registered as I tried to come to terms with my situation.

Acknowledgment was one thing, acceptance was another.

Instead of being fearful and confused I was lost and despairing. This wasn't supposed to happen. Not again. The first time I had written it off as a cosmic accident, that I was to unimportant to be purposely reincarnated but now…

Still I was not the unprepared civilian I had been the first time around. I was a shinobi of Konoha, one of the elite and a Nara to boot. I'd fought against mad men and demons, so naturally after I'd been twisted and churned and forced into a light that seared my not yet fully developed eyes I managed to take the experience with a bit more grace.

By which I mean I only cried a little bit.

Okay so I screeched the place down.

It was the helplessness that triggered it. I'd forgotten (repressed) just how difficult I had found it being aware but not being in control of my body and unlike last time it was much worse for me. In my first life I had been a civilian but in my most recent life I had been a ninja.

I still had the instincts, well at least the mind-set.

I was a ninja who had experienced war, was in unfamiliar surroundings, unable to move with compromised eyesight.

So despite already knowing what was going on a part of me still insisted I'd been captured or that this was all some elaborate Genjutsu.

Naturally my body responded to this perceived threat without my consent.

Only a baby's body is limited in what it can do when faced with a threat so it went with something more instinctual.

I screamed and cried and wailed like the baby I supposedly was.

So much for third times the charm.

…

Arthur Weasley is an old hand when it comes to child birth. Oh he's still completely useless when it happens and hasn't a clue what to do with his hands other than let his dear Molly-wobbles crush them as consolation for her pain however he at least knows what to expect.

William had been terrifying, their first child, and their first time as parents, yet after it was all over none of that had mattered because he was a father. The small boy in Molly's arms was theirs, was his and he had thought all the terror in world would be worth it if just for this single moment of blissful pride and love.

Charles had been easier but no less scary. He now had some idea of what to expect but it was still only his second child and he had kept on second guessing himself all throughout the delivery. It still amazed him how easy it had been to open up his heart and love his second child with exactly the same amount of love and affection as the first.

Percy had been the easiest of the bunch, third times the charm and all that but even then he'd still been a little wary due to it having been three years since their last child. What if they had forgotten something? Despite still not having the girl Molly had been hoping for Percy was just as precious as the others, he couldn't imagine not loving any of his children.

Besides they'd just keep trying until they had their fabled daughter, he certainly wasn't complaining.

The twins had been a surprise but not an unpleasant one. After all it did double the chances of at least one of them being a girl as Molly had joked one evening. They had been worried though, twins were something new and it wasn't uncommon for one twin to leach off the other's magic if developmental problems occurred. This often caused the twin being leached from to become a squib or worse be still born. The fact it was even more common in pure bloods didn't help with calming Molly's nerves or his for that matter.

Luckily everything worked out and Molly was so relieved that she didn't even jokingly comment about having another two sons to add to their wonderful not so little family.

Now he had just experienced the birth of his sixth child.

It was a bit different from the previous ones because instead of being in a hospital like the others it was being done in the master bedroom. After the death of her brothers Molly had been even more paranoid than usual about the protection of their family and he fully agreed.

They were after all theirs to protect.

They may be considered blood traitors by some wizarding folk but he was anything but when it came to family, when it came to his blood… well he was not usually a man prone to violence but for them he would do it in a heartbeat.

So they were having the birth at home, with a healer on standby to make sure there weren't any magical complications. Alastor had begrudgingly approved of them which went a long way to reassuring them on allowing the healer to help with the birth.

Ronald had been delivered but mere minutes ago and once again he was filled with the same unconditional love which he secretly could not get enough of. Molly and he met each other's eyes and he could tell that once again despite her words Molly would never care if they never had a girl because her sons, each and every one of them meant so much to her.

He had just been passed Ronald to hold for the first time when the healer alerted them to something being amiss.

They had their wand drawn and were frowning in what he would tentatively call confusion at Molly's stomach before casting a diagnostic charm on Molly's abdominal region.

His heart seemed to stutter in his chest. The birth was successful so what was wrong? Was there some underlying issue? Was Molly okay?

She had to be okay.

He couldn't even contemplate her not being okay because Molly was his rock, she was the heart of their family and just how was he supposed live without his heart?

He couldn't.

He was quickly reassured that Molly was not in any danger however there was a complication of sorts.

The healer had informed them that Molly's magic was still projecting its maternal ward.

A maternal ward is a piece of really old magic that women do subconsciously during their pregnancy. It helps protect their children from any magical diseases whilst being carried in the womb. It was for this reason why muggle methods were used in pre-birthing care rather than spells, as even healing spells were found to intervene with the wards stability. This was why they'd never found out the gender of their children before the actual birth itself. He knew from experience that the ward usually disabled on its own after the child was born so the fact it was still active was highly unusual.

The maternal ward still running wasn't a major issue but considering the fact it was a drain on Molly's own magical reserves it would have to be taken down by the healer. The healer had also explained that they were doing a diagnostic charm on Molly to make sure there wasn't a more serious reason behind this.

A gasp from the medic and the sudden cancellation of his charm brought back his previous fear faster than any death eater could. It didn't last long though as the half strangled words that left the healer's mouth quickly over rid that with sharp disbelief.

What did he mean there was another one?

Another child? They were having twins? More twins?

His disbelief was slower to fade than Molly's who was already ecstatic at the prospect of another child whilst also fretting about the health of the yet born baby.

He was still a bit stuck on the twin part. The rapidly forming affection was only mildly cautioned by the idea of another Fred and George...

It was amazing the mischief a pair of toddlers could get into, the amount of times they'd somehow gotten out of their crib was getting ridiculous.

Molly also seemed to remember this as they both shared a telling glance as the healer began to cast a different spell to help along their second child.

The maternal wards had already been breached by the diagnostic spell so it was too late to worry about that, instead the healer was focused on getting the child out with as few as complications as possible.

He was still baffled on how they'd missed the fact they were having twins.

It wasn't like the second one was hiding behind a notice me not spell, just how hadn't any one realized?

A part of him, the small pragmatic side of him people like Malfoy would dismiss him of being capable of was silently wondering if they would be able to afford a seventh child right now.

Still this was not the time for questions as the baby was already crowning and unexpected or not this child was theirs and it needed them.

Arthur had only just caught a glimpse of their latest child when he was distracted by the wave of pure unrestrained magic that swept over him.

Accidental magic was a rare occurrence from a fully grown witch or wizard but such was Molly's excitement that she had unconsciously flared hers in the form of an empathetic wave of her emotions.

He knew she had done it in excitement because he could literally feel the glee she was radiating.

His own eyes widened as he noticed what Molly must have just moments before his wife called out "it's a girl!"

Not another Fred and George.

Not identical.

Not two boys.

A girl.

He had a daughter.

His son's brought him so much happiness and he would never trade one of them for anything, not even a little girl. That said the knowledge that he now had a daughter, that he had fathered a daughter made it feel like he filled a part of himself he didn't realize was empty.

The love was no greater or less than that towards his boys. His love for her did not over shadow his love for Ron who he still cradled protectively to his chest however he did acknowledge the small part of himself that felt strangely satisfied.

They'd finally gotten their fabled daughter.

Molly was already in tears, her fingers twitching as she barely restrained herself from snatching their baby from the healer, his own eyes felt wet and his smile was beginning to hurt his cheeks.

So caught up in their happiness at this revelation he didn't notice anything was wrong until he paid attention to the twinge in his gut he had dismissed upon first seeing Molly's tears.

The baby wasn't crying.

Molly must have read something on his face because her magic faltered and she all but stilled in the bed, her eyes fixating on their daughter. He caught the exact moment she shared his realization by the paling of her face.

All of their boys had cried, even little Ron had been balling not long ago. The silence wasn't right at all.

Erratic thoughts "leaching magic, developmental delays, squib, death, and spells before birth" flashed through his mind, to frantic to pin down and rationalize.

The healer who had clearly known something was wrong before they did was already murmuring diagnostic spells at the baby before performing what he was sure was a watered down version of enervate of all things.

Their baby was not in danger but...sleeping?

Leaning forward towards the healer he caught a brief sight of two blue eyes before the lids on them abruptly slammed shut and high pitched wail broke the silence.

A distant part of him noted that the shade of blue although not his was familiar, very familiar.

It would only be later when he was looking up some old photographs after feeling nostalgic over his daughter's name that he would realize they were not his eyes but his father's eyes that stared back at him.

His own blue eyes were several shades lighter than his dad's.

Of course his relief that she was okay, "fine, she's okay, were okay, it's alright" didn't last long as Ronald woke up at her screaming her little lungs out and a second cry was quick to join in the commotion.

Again his caution regarding a second set of twins chose this moment to unhelpfully show itself.

Of course Molly knew exactly how to handle the situation, Merlin knows he would be lost without her and easily acquired their daughter from the wincing healer who had been caught of kilter by the sheer volume of her cries.

Once again he thanked his previous experience for helping him handle the situation better. It only took one small look from Molly, rather than a verbal reprimand for him to begin calming down Ronald.

It was their yet unnamed daughter who was harder to settle. Her small limbs kept on twitching and no matter how much Molly shushed and rocked her she wouldn't stop crying.

Luckily his Molly-wobbles is not one to be defeated and after recreating the empathetic wave she had conjured earlier only this time on purpose, she carefully focused it on enveloping the infant cradled to her chest.

The fight almost instantly left the child nestled in her arms and the cries were just quick to fade. In response he removed the silencing charm that he'd placed on the pair so as to stop Ron from being woken up again.

Moving closer to Molly so that she had clear view of both of their babies he let his gaze sweep over them both and finally allowed that feeling of love and pride to fill him up without disturbance.

Allowing Molly to cradle both Ron and their daughter in each arm, he cautiously reached out with his left hand and ran his fingers through the little tufts of ginger curls on her head, she had Molly's curls, before gently running his thumb down her cheek.

His other hand was or to be more specific his other index finger was currently being held hostage in Ronald's "firm" utterly adorable grip.

"They're perfect" he finally uttered feeling mentally exhausted and yet still contented after the storm of emotions he'd just weathered.

"They're ours" Molly agreed with a nod and there was something so satisfying about hearing it confirmed out loud rather than just in his head that caused his smile to widen.

"Twins Arthur, an actual girl, twins!" Molly ranted, more caught up on the fact that she was holding two infants rather than the knowledge that one of them was a girl.

"Merlin's socks! I don't even have a name for her. I wasn't prepared, just what are we going to call her?" Molly rambled revealing her real issue right now. Well it made sense, Molly and he had discussed for years what she would call their daughter when they finally had one but she'd never came to a final decision as the fabled daughter had never been born.

Until now.

It didn't take him long to think of a name, in fact he had thought of it since he'd first laid eyes on her but he hadn't been able to voice it until now when Molly had given him the perfect opening.

"What about Septima?" he queried his gaze focused on their daughter as he spoke the name, it seemed to fit.

Molly's scolding tone proved she disagreed. "Really Arthur, we can't just name her seventh born because we don't have a name planned."

He was about to disagree but realized it would only strengthen Molly's opposition on principal, instead he sought to reason with her by highlighting his real motivations behind that particular name.

"Molly it isn't just about not having a name ready, its tradition…sort of. Don't you remember my father?" he asked knowing he'd struck gold when her eyes softened a fraction.

Septimus Weasley, her father in law and his dad. Septima was the female form of Septimus; they could name her after him. Not only that but even though it wasn't original she was their seventh born and she had been born seven minutes after Ronald, therefore it did hold some merit.

"Both Runes and Arithmancy give significance to the number seven" the healer intervened and despite the looks they both shot him for involving himself in what was clearly a private conversation Molly looked even more considering.

Seven was widely believed to be a magically powerful number and not just because it was the age most children had their first bout of accidental magic. Naming a child after the number could indicate a positive future for the child in terms of magic or influence; then again he always was a little bit more sceptical of divination than his wife…probably due to his love of muggle sciences.

Looking at Molly who was looking down at their daughter he watched as she murmured his suggestion to herself before her face lightened.

"I like it" she whispered in a rare show of acceptance. Usually she was stubborn as a mule about these kind of things hence she had named all the boys, he was both touched and surprised by how fast she had approved.

"Septima Molly Weasley" he confirmed watching as her face fully lit up at the addition of the middle name.

They'd both agreed that their first boy got his name hence William Arthur Weasley so it was only natural that their first girl would get Molly for a middle name.

Apparently Molly had only just remembered this as indicated by the smile she was now shooting him which was interrupted only by her yawn.

The healer took that as a sign to begin giving out orders, in his unvoiced opinion the medic was still sour about them giving him the look earlier and promptly cohered Molly into handing over the twin's to the both of us so that Molly could get some rest.

Placing each child into the crib which for now they'd have to share, he decided to let Molly sleep for just about an hour before getting the boys.

Fred and George were at currently at Muriel's so it was only William, Charles and Percy waiting in the living room at the moment.

The boys had been told the delivery could take some time depending on how long the labor lasted so it wouldn't matter as long as he omitted the exact time of said delivery from them.

They'd be too distracted by the sight of two babies rather than one to call him on it anyways.

Feeling decidedly mischievous at pulling one over on his kids he once again skimmed his hand over both of the twin's heads, glad of this brief moment of peace where he could forget the worst of the war outside.

For now he was surrounded by those he loved content in the knowledge that they were safe and protected.

Twins.

A daughter.

Two more jewels to his treasury.

This moment of sanctuary would not be taken for granted.

…

So yey! Here's the first chapter hope you enjoyed it. Seeing as I have never written a Harry Potter fic before and only wrote my first Naruto fic yesterday I probably shouldn't be writing this but dam it all I just couldn't let the idea go so tada!

Septimus is actually Arthur's father name; I also chose the name Septima as a sort of joke on the whole "lucky sevens" things from DoS. Speaking of which parts of Shikako's/Septima's P.O.V is a blatant head nod towards the prologue of DoS encase you didn't notice.

I don't know when exactly Fabian and Gideon died I only found out it was before the end of the war.

Seriously I have so many idea's for this fic I'm fit to burst, hopefully my writers muse will stay with me.


	2. Chapter 1: Baby steps

Hi so important question before you start reading: Should Ginny be born or not?

A part of me wants her to but the only reason she was born in the first place was because Molly was desperate for a girl. Now she has one I don't see why they would have any more babies especially with how hard financially it is to support the family as it is. Now they have their fabled daughter why would they want the extra pressure? Personally I don't see her here, I also like the idea of Shikako's existence itself throwing off cannon even without her purposely meddling however if a lot of people really want Ginny in I'll keep her.

I'll remind you at the end encase you forget by the time your finished reading.

…

When I next awoke I felt strangely reassured and safe.

This was of course completely ludicrous. I knew for a fact I shouldn't be feeling this way.

The knowledge of this alone should have inspired another bout of panic and yet I couldn't quite find it in myself to once again cry out.

Laying quietly on a soft surface, I made sure to remain still and keep my eyes closed.

I knew from the medical journals Sakura had allowed me to borrow during one of my many stays in the hospital as well as from my own experience that my eye sight wouldn't be fully developed enough to be of any use. I also knew that if I was to open my eyes and someone happened to catch me doing so that I would be immediately forced to suffer through the indignity of being cooed over.

Yeah... I was trying to delay that one for as long as possible.

Instead of moving about or taking in the information from the other stimuli around me I decided to think over what I already knew and work from there. Thinking coherently for long periods of time would just make me sleepy and information overload would only add to that.

Insert comment about baby steps here.

Okay so I was still Shikako enough to hold onto the use of inappropriate humor in times of crisis that I'd developed as her.

That was something.

When I'd first became Shikako I'd retained my pragmatism from my original self as well as my working ethics. When I had still been Shikako it had been reassuring to have traces of who I'd been intermingled with who I had become, the same could be said for now.

The thing was I could never be one hundred percent certain if the personality I had in this life was a result of my current body or if certain traits were more soul linked and had crossed over with me.

I knew I'd only developed that particular brand of humor as Shikako therefore knew that trait was solely hers.

I also knew that the average Nara generally lacked the hard working gene unless there was some sort of threat to be dealt with, in which case it conveniently resurfaced. As Shikako I had actually enjoyed not only lending a hand to any one who needed it but also the effort itself put into each of my research projects so I'd known that my work values were carrying over from my original self.

I'd like to think that my compassion was a natural trait in all my lives but I suppose it was still a bit soon to know for sure in this one.

Heaven forbid if when I begin human interaction again that I some how just find myself just not caring.

I don't think the world could handle me as a sociopath.

Then again the fact I was concerned about being reborn a potential sociopath more than likely ruled out me being one.

It's all about the small victories… and I'm getting distracted again. I keep forgetting I have a child's brain now even though my mind set is that of an adult's.

Well actually that was a lie. It wasn't that I was forgetting, rather I was underestimating the biological influences that could impact behavior.

The whole brain vs mind argument.

I was a baby, there was no getting away from that fact and as such like any other baby I found it hard to focus. Hence the constant distraction, hence the not concentrating on the task at hand, hence the not making my list…

Dammit.

Okay so what do I know so far? What can I last remember that might explain why I'm so unnaturally calm now?

I'd fallen asleep before I could figure out what I was currently called but that was fine, I'd no doubt find out sooner or later.

Embarrassment aside I'm pretty sure the last thing I remember is having some sort of emotional breakdown.

Hmmm… No that wasn't it, there was something else, something more… I'd been passed off to someone, even in the middle of my crying session there was no mistaking that well-endowed chest so whoever it was they were most certainly female.

Nurse? Midwife? Whoever they were they had cradled me gently and had attempted to offer comfort. Actually now I was thinking about it they'd held me almost possessively…so mother?

Again I was back to speculation. Stick to facts for now, my body had already began to relax again so I knew even this much thinking was straining to my young body.

Speculation dealt with infinite possibilities and that type of brain work would definitely send me to sleep.

Right so I'd been held by a woman and comforted, then what?

There had been something. A sensation similar to positive intent being over powered with chakra had swept over my senses.

Was it chakra? Had I been reborn back into the Shinobi world? But then the question still remained, when? Before my time as Shikako? After?

Just imagining being reborn as one of my friend's kids or even grand-kids was weird not to mention disturbing.

Was I even in the same world? It could be the Shinobi world but a parallel version of it. Nothing could be ruled out.

I was doing it again, getting off topic.

There wasn't even a guarantee it was the Shinobi verse and I was already panicking at the mere possibility.

Ergh, my emotional control is also being compromised by my current age.

In fact if I really analysed the memory of how it felt…nope not chakra. In fact it felt more like…

…

Erm what…

Well I had predicted it might happen. Still…

To fall asleep mid thought… How long had I even been out?

Actually scratch that, why in Kami was there an arm digging in my side?

And what was that that wetness on my shoulder?

Did I risk opening my eyes and finding out?

Okay something wet just slid down my shoulder. Yup looks like I'm risking it.

It was an arm digging in my side, a very small arm belonging to an equally small being.

Not that I was one to talk.

A baby.

A baby was lying right next to me, curled up into my side.

A baby who was currently leaning their head against my shoulder, putting them in the perfect position to drool all over me.

My shoulder was wet.

I had been drooled on.

Before I could even process the feelings of disgust that crept up on me I was already acting on them, so much for dignity.

My cries caught the attention of the two adults I'd failed to notice and despite the one who was over by the blurred brown (wardrobe?) being closer the figure lying on what must have been a bed still managed to beat them to the crib.

Unless all women here had such memorable…traits it was definitely the same one who had held me before.

Then again I was a baby, maybe it was my size that made them seem like that?

The way she rocketed towards the crib was yet another point towards her being my new mother.

My eyes were scrunched up with my crying but I heard her address me all the same as she once again held me in her arms.

To my surprise she addressed me in a language I did not think I would ever hear from another person again.

English, she was speaking English.

Well mostly, she kept on saying Septima. What did Septima mean? Was it French? I was pretty sure sept was French for seven, seven what?

Hang on, putting that into context with the rest of her sentence and how she was saying it... Plus the way she practically crooned the word…

Was it…no but it sounded like…

Could it be?

Then again... Knowing my luck...

It was my name.

Septima.

They called me Septima.

They spoke English and decided to call me something like that?

Then again maybe where ever I've been reborn it's a normal name, common even. This could be a parallel of my original world or it could even be in a future time line where it's perfectly acceptable to name your chil-...

…

Oh this was quickly becoming tedious.

Reviewing my out burst I still can't believe I reacted like that. I've been covered in the blood of my enemies and a month's load of grime before, surely I can handle some drool?

Another reason why being a baby is high on my "Messed up things that happen to me and my team" list.

Well it's not like I didn't predict that mission would go FUBAR. It was after all expected in ANBU for complications to arise and it wasn't like someone in that occupation could turn away a mission even if my Hokage was Naruto.

Well actually that's an even more blatant lie, I know if I'd asked he would let me in a heartbeat but it doesn't exactly set a very good example, especially when he hadn't had the hat all that long.

I wonder how they were coping?

Did they miss me?

Did our time lines even run linear?

How long had I been dead before being reincarnated, maybe my soul had been lingering in some sort of void for fifty years and I just didn't remember?

Anyways time to get back to the present.

I don't know if it was me over thinking, me panicking or her rocking me that lulled my mind to rest.

Still at least I knew who I was now, kind of…

I still wasn't sure if I was somehow less of the people I used to be in this body or not…

Blimey.

I feel tired.

Last time I had thought it was an accident so I never really thought about the true implications of being reincarnated. Not to mention thinking about it made me uneasy so if I could convince myself it didn't matter, was a one-time thing then I was happy to do so.

Now it had happened again and I just knew I wouldn't be able to be so laid back about it this time around.

Nope. I'm going to stop thinking about it right now. I can do it later like much later when I'm old enough to not fall asleep midway through.

Mental philosophical discussions should always be held off on until one can at very least control their own bowl movements.

Speaking of which…

Yup this whole baby thing had officially become tedious.

I suppose this is where I start crying.

…

The following year of my life quickly ran into a routine of sleep, eat, oh and did I mention sleep.

Yes it was practically riveting.

At least until seventh month mark but I haven't even told you the beginning yet so you'll have to wait.

At the start of it all I found it very hard to stay conscious and as a result of that I quickly lost track of time.

Mainly because I kept working myself into mental exhaustion.

I couldn't help it though. It'd been hard enough the first time round when I was adapting to being a Nara. This time though I had the mental intellect of two life times, one of which was from a clan that prized their ability to think through multiple scenarios.

So even though I knew better I couldn't help but think myself in circles.

I knew speculating would get me nowhere and that thinking about my current circumstances too hard just made me needlessly emotional but it wasn't like I had anything else to do.

Speculating at least gave me a distraction even if it was a bad habit to form.

I internally justified it by promising myself that as soon as I was old enough to toddle around and ask coherent questions I would begin to gather actual evidence.

Not that I didn't find out at least some things.

For starters I received confirmation that the two adults in the room with me from my second moment of consciousness as Septima were indeed my new parents.

I learnt they were called Molly and Arthur from when they addressed each other although dad more often than not referred to her as Molly-wobbles when he was in an overly affectionate mood which was basically all the time in my presence since they seemed to just love doting on me and Ron.

Ronald really, though I'd only heard him be called that a few times since one of the twins had called him Ron. I believe it was because they couldn't pronounce his full name however mum thought it was adorable and it stuck.

Anyways Ronald was the baby who I shared sleeping space with, I heard mum and dad talk about getting us separate beds before dismissing it on the sound wisdom that one cot made it easier to keep an eye out for trouble.

However it did mean we constantly woke each other up with our crying. I felt only a smidge guilty until I remembered that if I didn't cry out I'd have to wait who knows how long before someone realized I was hungry or lying in my own filth.

Not pleasant.

I wasn't sure what to think about Ron. He was my twin and I could almost feel that he was significant in some way to me however I wasn't happy about it.

It felt like a betrayal.

It felt like I was betraying Shikamaru.

My parents were different. All of my parents in all of my life times were the ones biologically at least responsible for giving me the opportunity to live again and it was so very easy to love them. After all how could you not love the people who looked after you every day.

The people who fed you, washed you, comforted you, held you when you woke up from a nightmare or a memory (not that they knew that) in the middle of the night.

I had depended, still depended on my parents for survival and like it or not that forced a bond to form between us. One that started out as affection and oh so easily evolved into love

I did not depend on Ron and therefore I had no such attachment.

He wasn't even developed enough to acknowledge or respect any feelings on my part anyways.

I guess… a small part of me resented him.

Resented him for making me feel like I was replacing Shikamaru.

I'd never had a twin in my original body, I'd thought our bond was special, couldn't be mimicked.

I never thought anything could replace it, replace the understanding between us that never faded no matter how old we got or how many other relationships we cultivated.

That was until Ron, whose very existence seemed to spite that bond. Made it seem less special because it wasn't just between me and Shika who had felt almost a part of me. I now had to share that connection with him.

I now had to share a part of me with him.

I barely knew who I was anymore, to give up even a small part of myself felt like too much of a sacrifice.

I resented that.

I also resented that no matter how much it felt like a betrayal, no matter how much I brooded into exhaustion over it, I absolutely hated how part of me wanted to let him in.

It meant that a part of me was okay with letting go of Shikamaru and allowing Ron to take his place because no matter how much I denied it I was desperate for some sort of connection, to relate to some one even a little, to have some sort of anchor.

Shika had been that stability for me last time, so why couldn't Ron be?

I was terrified I would forget what it felt like to be Shika's other half. I was no longer his biological twin but that didn't mean I wanted him to lose his significance to me.

It took a whole six months and I could tell because it was around the time my eyesight cleared up to acceptable levels which took just as long, to at the very least feel neutral towards Ron.

He was after all a baby. One who was just a little bit adorable when he giggled and one who I would often wake up to find cuddling one of my arms during his sleep. The gestures were so innocent that I couldn't hold onto my irrational hatred of him.

It wasn't like he knew about Shikamaru, he didn't mean to take his spot if anything I was the one at fault. I'd had my time yet here I was back for round three intruding on Ron's family.

Anyways it wasn't like Ronald was the only sibling I had now, even if he was the only one who inspired a feeling of grief in me.

I also had five other brothers.

Again it was only around the sixth month mark when my eyes had developed and I'd also stopped mentally throwing shade at Ronald that I could tell them all apart. Well most of them.

At first they'd all been the five blurred blobs that were different from mum and dad only because they were shorter and more high pitched.

Dad had brought them to me on my fourth bout of consciousness but I'd found it difficult to remember who was who.

The youngest two were apparently also twins and couldn't have been much older than me considering their limited vocabulary at the time, "girl, babies, cool" and the fact that when dad held one of them over the crib the finger that poked me insistently in the cheek didn't seem very big.

Their names were Fred and George and as I would find out later they were actually identical.

Speaking of names it did not escape me that out of the whole family I was the only one with a weird name.

Another point on my slowly growing list of "things to about ask when able" which was quite long by this point.

Then there was Bill or William as he was called but only when he was in trouble if Mum's shouting was anything to go by, he'd actually been allowed to hold me because as he had so aptly bragged to Percy "I'm the oldest."

Charles or Charlie as he mostly goes by naturally declared that he would get a go next since he was second eldest and although mum scolded him for not asking politely he did indeed get a go as long as he "sat down" whilst doing so. Both Charlie and Bill were about similar heights so in the first few months I found it very difficult to tell the difference between them.

Percy I'd noted was both taller than the twins and had a better grasp on the English language than them so it was easy to work out that he was the elder of the three, he was apparently though not older than Bill and Charlie as he was not allowed to hold me.

However mum did say if he sat next to her quietly while she held me then he could pet my head.

I found the feeling of being treated like an animal was highly insulting.

One thing that was obvious about my family as a whole even when my eye sight was foggy was that they were all blindingly ginger.

Mum's and Charlie's were a bit darker but dad's, Bill's, Percy's, the twin's and even Ron's hair was that of a startlingly light shade of ginger.

The fact I noticed this even on our first meeting with my underdeveloped eyes proved I wasn't over exaggerating when I thought of them as being "blindingly ginger."

So by acknowledging the obvious, given that we were family I also found out that I would be ginger this time round on top of being from a larger family.

I'd only ever had Shikamaru before and he wasn't exactly loud so adapting to a bunch of rambunctious siblings would take some getting use to.

After the sixth month mark I slept less during the day as I actually had a reason to keep my eyes open and so I stopped accidentally falling asleep unless I tired myself out mentally.

My improved vision meant I could catalog things about my family and not just their appearances, it meant I also noticed things.

Such as the fact that unless the society I lived in had a really bad economy, or was less developed as a whole from what I was used to then we were probably not that well off. Simple things like the old, mismatching furniture or the worn clothes every one but me and Ron wore gave away the families life style.

This didn't bother me to much as I was used worse conditions when on missions however it was a notable change when compared to my previous lifetime as clan head's daughter. I guess I'd taken the compound and how well we had things for granted more than I'd thought.

However this discovery was small and took me relatively no time at all to find out after my vision improved, it was the one that I had to wait for, the one I didn't see coming that was most interesting.

It was around the seventh month of me being there (the day I'd mentally noted that I hadn't complained about my eye sight for a while was the day I guessed around six months had passed and so I was calculating based on that) that I discovered something significant.

I mean I already knew about it, the thing that I'd speculated about, the thing that felt like chakra but wasn't.

But it was Charlie who led me to a break through.

I was sitting on mum's lap in the living room while she fed me some mashed potato, a novelty which had yet to wear off after a life time of main meals mostly consisting of fish, noodles and rice.

Dad was playing on the carpet with the twins and Percy whilst Bill was walking Charlie through how to play chess effectively a little bit further away.

Ron was currently sitting propped up against the couch, one hand currently wedged in his mouth which he idly sucked on whilst his gaze remained curiously on dad as he crawled around and "attacked" our brothers as the tickle monster.

All in all it was an average day and nothing notable going on.

That was until Charlie threw a tantrum.

Apparently he didn't like the fact that he still couldn't win against Bill no matter how many times he had the rules explained to him.

He'd just started yelling about how much it was a "stupid game" and he "didn't care" if he never got good at a muggle version (whatever a muggle was, it sounded familiar but I couldn't place why) because surely he "didn't need to be good at it to master a wizarding set."

I promptly choked on a bit of potato at that and just as mum was finished helping to wind me and I was becoming coherent enough to make sure I hadn't miss heard him did something unusual happen.

Whilst I'd been dying on potato of all things Charlie had been adding to his tirade that the "whole game is a waste of time and might as well be thrown out" when the unusual thing happened.

Almost as if reacting to his words every last piece on the board began to raise up into the air, hover for a moment, before shooting dramatically straight out the window.

All activity in the living room seized.

"Charles!" Mum was already on her feet, still cradling me as she approached the two shell shocked boys.

"Charlie!" Dad also exclaimed however unlike mum he sounded almost gleeful. He'd also moved when mum had but none of the other boys seemed to mind as they were still caught up in their awe.

I was still trying to make sense of what had happened I'd felt…something. Not as strong as I could chakra but it was like a…disturbance or something. Some extra awareness just about the same time the pieces had begun to levitate.

"Did you see that!" Charlie exclaimed to Bill completely talking over mum and dad in his excitement.

Bill was surprisingly not even remotely upset over what had happened and was actually congratulating Charlie on his aim.

I couldn't see the twin's but I could hear their excited rambling from their place on the floor.

Percy was the only one who seemed even remotely upset by the turn of events but more because he was jealous if his "No fair…" was anything to go by.

"Charles Weasley! Don't you ignore me; just what do you have to say for yourself?" mum scolded in a voice that did get Charlie's attention.

Both Charlie and even Bill seemed to freeze before Charlie began to fumble out a response, "W-well mum, you see, I erm, chess and um we were playing and I just..."

Luckily dad was there to save him from his awkwardness, "now Molly, you can't really blame him for this. You know as well as I do we've been expecting this for a while now, weren't you fretting just the other day about him turning eight this month and still no sign?"

Charlie seemed almost guilty about the insinuation he'd been late showing whatever the cause of that little display had been which was only evened out by his look of relief at dad's intervention.

Mum appeared torn before her own relief overrode this and relented, "I suppose you have a point dear, it is called accidental magic for a reason" however she couldn't help adding "though you really must learn to keep your temper Charles."

It was at this point I had stopped listening to what was going on around me although I was vaguely aware of dad talking mum into celebrating Charlie's first milestone on the path to wizardry which elected cheers from all around, even from the twins who had no idea why it needed celebrating but were able to pick up on the mood. Ron had fallen asleep at this point.

My racing thoughts at this new revelation were apparently to strenuous for me to handle and I quickly joined him.

It was only later that evening when I awoke back in the familiar surroundings of my crib and the information had time to sink in that I began to go over it.

"Accidental magic" is what she said.

The whole chess set sans board flying out the window.

The strange wave of energy that had swept over and comforted me in the hospital.

I had noted at the time that It felt like chakra and occasionally as I had half dozed in the play pen I had felt something similar only to never catch sight of anything amiss.

Until now with Charlie's accidental magic.

What had he said earlier, something about wizard's chess.

Yup, there was no escaping it.

I wasn't in the Shinobi world or even a parallel version of it where they all spoke English like I'd once contemplated. Not that I thought my parents were ninja, they clearly weren't it's just what else was I supposed to think of the not chakra.

I also wasn't in my original world.

I was in a whole new world where magic was real.

My mind wanted to rebel there was no such thing but to some people wasn't chakra like magic?

Plus a twice reincarnated spirit who had once wielded lightning, manipulated shadows and controlled dimensional space pockets through seals denying the existence of magic was just ridiculous.

My family was magic.

I was in a world of wizards.

I might have magic.

Apparently age was a factor and you couldn't just train it like you could chakra so I would have to wait and see.

Yes it took seven months for me to decide that this new life might not be the worst thing ever.

…

And there we have it the baby years! I'm going to be skimming over the toddler ones the following years up until she first turns seven, when it will be her turn to hit a magical milestone. This chapter was more about seeing Shikako adapting and coming to turns with her new life as well as how she's dealing with her new family.

I'm not rushing her childhood because I want to develop her relationship with her new family and have at least some one on one moments between Sepitma and the rest of them to see how she connect to each of them differently. I need for her relationship to the Weasley's to feel believable.

She will figure out she's in another fictional world eventually however she will barely remember anything. Certainly not enough to know the future like last time (I know Shikako remembered Harry Potter but Shikako has also hinted at finding it harder to remember parts of the Naruto plot which was important to her. This in Shikako's future where her previous life's memories were even more faded and then after dying even less made the transfer which is why she remembers even less about Harry Potter than she did in her first reincarnation) Anywho what this means in terms of plot. She won't have the motivation of knowing bad things are going to happen to push her into preemptive action however she will have her natural curiosity about this new culture and her ninja nosiness/suspicion to push her into investigating certain things.

Don't forget the important question: Should Ginny be born or not?


	3. Chapter 2: Far from the war

Without giving to much away writing this chapter was very much like stepping into a mindfield, even now I'm half expecting it to blow up in my face so I'll apologize in advance and hope that I've done the content justice as I'm still on the rocks to that answer.

…

Molly Weasley was currently the happiest she'd been for a long time, since losing her brothers, since losing her friends, probably since the war first started.

Oh things weren't perfect, the war was still on going, there were reports of more muggle deaths which led to a not quite fear that they were just one more killing away from the Stature of Secrecy being irrevocably broken and she still worried constantly about those most at risk of being targeted.

The lack of news from some families like the Potters and Longbottoms who were rumored to have gone into hiding was disconcerting to say the least even if she understood their reasons.

Okay so maybe 'happy' was a stretch but she was certainly at her most content.

The reason for this was she was still riding high from the two not so new additions to her not so little family.

Ronald and Septima Weasley.

Twins.

One boy and one girl.

One son and one _daughter_.

Yes it had taken a while for that part to fully sink in. The first few months after the birth she'd been too busy fretting over how they would manage with the two new additions, there had been much to consider. After all Fred and George were still toddlers and Percy bless his soul, for all he hardly ever broke the rules was still only four much too young to be without complete supervision.

Bill and Charlie could be trusted to at least behave but they certainly couldn't be expected to take care of the others and Arthur had work.

Originally when planning for just one new born they figured she would have it under control as she would of carried them around with her whilst keeping the youngest of her brood in the living room and under her watchful eye for any mishaps.

Dealing with two new-borns was different.

She'd be rushed off her feet. Getting one baby to sleep was hard enough, getting two would be a nightmare and just how could she feed/carry them both at the same time as well as keep an eye on the rest of them?

So she had every right to worry after her initial, "awwwww, these are my babies, aren't they adorable, oh I love them already" glee had worn down.

In the end however it had all worked out.

Arthur was now working from home which made dealing with the kids a lot easier.

With the war on going the ministry was doing everything it could to keep its populace safe. In general she thought they were doing a pretty bad job of it but every so often they had a clever idea, which was probably the only reason there wasn't a more wide spread panic.

In all his wisdom the minister of magic had decided to lend his support and "protect those most at peril in these trying times" which put the Weasley family near the top of that list. As so called "blood traitors" they were already at risk and when one took into consideration Arthur's job even the ministry couldn't deny they were a probable target.

Therefore Arthur was working from home, receiving work through the Floo-network which was heavily warded with help from the Order since the ministry had only gone as far as to monitor their owl post which was nowhere near an acceptable level of "necessary precaution" as far as she was concerned.

Anyways all in all this had left Molly reasonably content.

Her family, including Arthur were now at home where she could keep an eye on them.

They were safe or as safe as they could be and considering how much worse they could have it this was more than good enough to keep her in lighter spirits despite her distant worries.

Now a full year after the birth of the twins with no personal disaster striking in between, which was nothing short of a miracle all things considered she found herself hesitantly beginning to relax into domestic life.

This did not mean she forgot about the war, Arthur's occasional liaison with the Order insured that as well as her own natural worrying however she felt a little bit more assured where her little one's were concerned.

Well to a point.

Even without the war she was certain her children would find ways to cause her worry, intentional or not.

Two in particular would not leave her thoughts.

William and Septima.

Yes Fred and George caused her grief, they'd not long celebrated their third birthday in April which had only just been the other month and the cake fiasco was still forbidden from being mentioned however that was the sort of stress she could handle.

What she could not handle was the uncertainty she held towards her eldest and youngest for two very different reasons.

William was perhaps both the more pressing worry and the easiest if only for how straight forward it was. The problem was Bill's age and what it meant.

Bill had turned ten last December which meant he would be turning eleven this year. Luckily for her heart Hogwarts started in September which meant Bill would be to young to join this year however she was worried about next.

The war was showing no signs of going away soon and if things kept up she'd have no choice but to send her baby out into a dangerous world and more worryingly away from her reach.

1982, the year he would start Hogwarts, the year which would repeat itself in her head if only to remind her that she was running out of time.

It wasn't that she didn't trust the school, she knew it had powerful wards set up however she could not fool herself into thinking that the children of Death Eaters would not be attending and that they wouldn't pose a threat to her son.

It was May now, which meant seven more months till New Year, which meant nine more months till term started for her first born.

She could only pray the war would end before then.

Her problem with Septima was a little more complicated as it was less of an actual worry and more of a possible concern.

It was all to do with her daughter's development.

Before Ronald and Septima came along she had already given birth five times and borrowed more books on babies than was probably required during her first pregnancy alone, so she felt quite confident that she was familiar with the average stages a child should be at for their age when it comes to personal growth.

Ronald followed the expectant parameters she had come to know.

Septima did not.

Her daughter displayed a higher ability to grasp certain concepts which was made even clearer when compared against Ron.

This in itself was not an issue; she could just be a little bit quicker in some areas. Sure she had grasped crawling at six months when it took Ron eight but that wasn't really a bad thing.

On average babies tend to crawl around seven to ten months so being a little early wasn't really a concern. Percy and Bill had gotten it at the very end of seven months, Charlie eight like Ron and Fred and George had been one of the earliest at two weeks into seven months so naturally she wasn't too worried.

In fact she half expected Septima to grasp it before Ron after having witnessed all the wriggling about she did at tummy time which had made for quite an amusing sight. Not only that but personally seeing her daughter sitting up on her own at three months had already given her a clue about what to expect.

However the main problem struck when she observed her daughter's behavior in general and her worrying lack of enthusiasm regarding certain social developments.

All of her children had started babbling around three months old. Ronald had started halfway through exactly, spewing out meaningless noises whenever he got too excited or was upset by something.

Septima on the other hand seemed almost reluctant to, in fact the few times she had made a sound her face would scrunch up as if she was displeased with what was coming out and she would promptly shut up.

Any attempts at engaging her further would result in her going back to sleep or in a couple of notable occasions rolling away from you.

Arthur had not found it nearly as funny when it had happened to him.

In fact they'd both been quite worried with how much their daughter had slept in the beginning, not just when she was sulking.

While Ron was awake and enjoying being made faces at or played with by herself and Arthur Septima spent most her time oblivious to what was going on around her. Even when she was awake sometimes Molly would have to get right in her face in order to get the girl's attention.

It had been most puzzling as well upsetting, this was the daughter they'd been waiting for and even if she wasn't the fact that she had been barely engaging those first few months had left her in a constant state of uneasiness.

What if there was something wrong and they hadn't taken action?

What if their daughter wanted to reach out to them but something was stopping her?

What if she was relying on them to help but they just weren't picking up the right signals?

Arthur bless him was a constant source of reassurance during this time; his promises that they "would get through this" went a long way in comforting her.

He also created many schemes to trick their daughter into reacting to them, he'd do all sorts of stunts including a light tickling charm to startle a laugh out of her. It was only the realization that the tickle charm incident was the first time their daughter had laughed which made her all the more aware that something was not right with her youngest.

A part of her was worried that in exchange for her heightened intelligence, their daughter would be left socially behind.

As proud as she was of her daughter's achievements and who wouldn't be when she blew all of them away when they caught her tottering about the length of the coffee table by using it as a support at the age of nine months, she would rather Septima be average if it meant she would act more like her siblings.

Molly didn't mind that her daughter was different, truthfully she would accept her children no matter what however she worried that Septima might struggle to fit in when she was older if this kept up and progressed into something worse.

She didn't want any of her children to be friendless or feel alone.

Still it may not come to that as Arthur's schemes had been working and ever since he started doing "magic tricks" for her and Ron's entertainment she seemed to smile more, even if she did make a face whenever she let out an unintentional babble of joy.

In addition to this there had been a vast leap of progress ever since she had started talking the odd word clearly.

Ronald was actually first to say his first words "Daddy and Hung-gee" which was both disappointing and adorable. She'd half wanted 'Mummy' to be his first words but she guessed it was okay seeing as Bill, Percy and the twins had called her Mummy first so she supposed it was nice that Arthur could have more than just Charlie saying "Daddy" first.

Ron's inability to say hungry and the fact of all words he'd picked up that was simply the funniest thing she'd heard all year and even her three eldest would snigger when he shouted it at random intervals.

Septima's first words had taken both her and Arthur by surprise as it had been neither of their names and instead something they didn't even consider.

It had been late one evening when both Charlie and Percy had come into the living room with Tales of the Beadle and the Bard and were demanding that either Arthur or she read it to them.

Arthur was reading the newspaper in his chair whilst she was sitting feeding Ron some milk, Fred and George had fallen asleep in the playpen and Bill was currently sitting next to her with Septima in his lap who was waiting for her turn from the bottle.

William had taken his responsibilities as a big brother seriously with all except possibly Charlie as they were close in age and sometimes he seemed to forget that he was the older one. With everyone else though he gained a brief glimpse of maturity as he tried to act like the perfect big brother, something Percy was beginning to start emulate towards both sets of twins.

William having never had a sister before and being of the understanding that girls, especially little ones were supposed to be more "softer" than little boys had decided to be extra attentive when it came to Septima.

She'd caught him more than once pick up Ronald if only to get him to stop harassing his twin by shoving his hand in her face. That is not to say he didn't watch out for Ronald, she'd had a very stern talking with him explaining why it was important to make sure Ron felt equally cared for.

He'd handled it with far more understanding than she'd expected which made her wonder if he'd ever been jealous of his brothers in order to understand why exactly it was necessary Ron didn't feel neglected.

Either way she'd been particularly proud of him by the end of that particular chat.

Anyways that was why William was helping her out that night with feeding his two youngest siblings when both Charlie and Percy made their entrance.

Of course Arthur was more than willing to participate in story time however he allowed it to drag out a little while pretending to consider it, he probably found their continued pleas at him to read for them amusing.

That was when a high pitched chirp interrupted them with not a plea but a clear demand due to the tone to "Read!"

In disbelief she'd paused in her feeding, looking to Bill who was _not_ the culprit and instead directing her gaze to the infant on his lap.

"Did she just…?" Charlie was the one to ask, his own look of astonishment fading between one blink and the next.

"Story. Read." Were the next two words chirped and if she hadn't been so distracted she might have laughed at the fact Arthur was actually gaping.

"Mum! She spoke! Did you hear that? She spoke!" Percy exclaimed just as Bill let out a chuckle of amusement.

"Oh Arthur!" she couldn't help gushing as he stood from his chair to take Septima from William and into his arms.

"Well done Sweetheart! Well done. Oh you're such a clever girl!" He cooed before blowing a raspberry onto her cheek and making her laugh.

Another trick of his he'd come up with to stop her fussing whenever you tried to gush over her.

Septima's giggles had lit up the room and her own heart had seemed to swell in affection while Arthur declared that he would read "every book in the house" much to her disapproval and Percy's delight.

So yeah, Septima's first words were not what they were expecting but they were certainly memorable.

They were both disappointed that despite having turned one two months ago in March she had still yet to say mum and dad.

It was like if she couldn't pronounce the names properly she refused to speak them, she was positive she'd heard her babbling what sounded like; up, food, yes, no and some other words which while easily identifiable weren't always clearly spoken.

When she had made her presence known however Septima was silent and instead had grinned up at her with a little "Hello" which was one of the few words she had managed to pronounce.

So yes while Septima was improving compared to what she had been, sleeping less, being more aware, and engaging without prompts she still would occasionally zone out and remained reluctant in playing with her brothers.

Arthur called her "our little enigma" at the fact she was both advanced and behind certain standards of norm and was able to ignore or disregard most of her quirks.

Molly didn't mind the quirks, all of her children had them but she wasn't quite yet ready to let the matter as a whole go as Arthur was.

So as a whole she was worried for William and was on the fence if she should be so for Septima, she was certainly concerned but she'd been reliably informed of her tendency's to fret so that was up in the air.

Currently she was preparing to head out to St Mungo's leaving the children in Arthur's and Muriel's care once she arrived here.

She wouldn't be gone for long but she felt more reassured with two sets of eyes on the kids while she was gone.

Her menstrual cycle had started again at the beginning of this month and she was concerned over why the contraceptive spell which should have prevented it in the first place seemed to have failed. She was worried over how long it had been down for so she had booked an appointment to discuss it and hopefully get it sorted as soon as possible.

Now it was the 3rd of May and her appointment was for ten so she was preparing to Floo there.

Muriel showed up just as she finished doing up her cloak so with a last round of kissed she made her way into the fire place and headed off to her destination.

...

When Arthur had gotten a Floo call from St Mungo's but twenty minutes after his wife left and ten minutes after Muriel had finally stopped nagging him he knew something was wrong.

The healer hadn't given away much just that his presence was required immediately in the Magical diseases ward of all places before the connection had been cut loose.

Magical diseases.

She had only went there to talk about contraceptives.

Bloody hell.

The great thing about Muriel was that for all her criticisms and there were many this he knew for a fact, she was also very loyal and very reliable in a crisis.

So when he turned away from the fire to retrieve his things he didn't really know why he was surprised to find her already passing him his boots with his cloak over one arm ready for be handed over afterwards.

What he did know was that he had never been more grateful, especially when she reassured him about looking after the kids while he was away. Luckily for him his eldest three who would have know something was wrong were currently upstairs in their bedrooms.

Well it was less luck and more they'd hidden away after hearing about their aunt's visit but still it worked in his favor.

Fred, George, Ron and Septima were all currently in the playpen together as the youngest twins were now old enough to play with the three years old without having to fear for broken limbs after being treated like dolls.

They'd all stopped in their play to watch him curiously as he finished putting on his cloak and he quickly made his way over to them to give them a reassuring kiss on the cheek. Fred and George both giggled and gave him sloppy kisses back, Ron gave him a gummy smile and Septima did not pull away or make a face which he counted as a win.

In fact as he went to stand back from her he was surprised when a tug at the front of his cloak made him pause to see a tiny hand gripping the material.

While Septima didn't discourage his efforts to engage with her any more she certainly didn't initiate any affectionate gestures other than the odd smile or when she would clutch at him after a nightmare so this was real progress.

It was just too bad he didn't have time for her right now. Molly needed him.

Enveloping her small body in his arms he picked her up and hugged her to his chest whilst letting out a wry chuckle. When he felt her hand loosen and looked down to see a curious expression on her face while a part of him melted the more responsible part of him was already prompting him to take the chance to hand her over to Muriel who had her arms out waiting.

The moment he did so and stepped away towards the fire he heard her start to kick up a fuss, keeping his back to them so as to hide his smile of amusement at both Septima's tantrum and Muriel's attempt at handling it he accessed the fire place and made his way to the hospital.

Which is how he found himself here, in a private room trying to comfort a distraught Molly while half wondering what in Godric's name was going on.

He'd never seen Molly like this.

Usually when Molly was upset she'd react expressively. Her temper was explosive and even her general upset was very, very loud. Something he reckoned everyone but Percy had inherited.

Now he was faced with a quiet Molly who if he didn't know any better he would say was in a state of shock.

Her eyes were red but she was so very, almost forcefully still.

He wanted answers.

He wished he had never gotten them.

The Healer explained to him that Molly had contracted a disease; at first he didn't understand the problem.

The disease would focus on the brain, more importantly the limbic system most commonly known to most wizarding folk as their magical core. As it was a magical disease it would only corrupt a person's magic however since it targeted the core which was in such a delicate place biologically the backlash of rebelling magic could have devastating results.

The only reason Arthur wasn't worried when the healer first began discussing it was because it didn't affect adult wizards, in fact it rarely affected any magic folk because maternal wards kept those at risk of getting it from being effected.

Then Arthur had a thought, in Molly's last pregnancy the maternal wards had been breached, had that had some sort of repercussion on Molly?

Wild ideas such as all the diseases Molly had been blocking from the twins being rebounded back onto her sprang into his mind and the only thing holding him together was the healer's continued explanation and the hope that he was wrong.

He was wrong but it was not a relief as he thought it might have been, the truth was much worse.

So he'd been told what had happened.

How Molly had gone from talking about contraceptives, to magical diseases.

Why Molly was so upset.

The contraceptive had indeed stopped working as she'd suspected.

Only her bleeding wasn't her period returning.

They'd miscarried.

He didn't know when he first started tearing up but he felt the water slide down his face as the Healer began to give him her condolences.

He had lost a child.

A child they didn't even know about.

And she was _sorry!_

What was she sorry for!

Was she sorry that the contraceptive charm that was supposed to prevent this from happening had failed?

Was she sorry that the maternal wards that should have prevented the unborn child from catching the disease in the first place had been broken down due to the spells used to help deliver their last child?

Was she sorry that because they hadn't been planning on having any more children that they hadn't thought to have the healer check the wards after their last birth and make sure there were no lingering traces of foreign magic to prevent them from reforming should they conceive again?

Was she sorry that the shields had failed and their poor, poor unborn child didn't even have a chance to fight off the disease and magical backlash had caused haemorrhaging in their brain?

Just what was she sorry for!

Perhaps it was for her stupid, thoughtless, naive comment that the baby wouldn't have suffered because it would have been quick?

As if that would somehow make it better, as if it would somehow stop his blood's erratic pounding through his veins and his heart from yelling in silent anguish for the child he was only now finding out about.

What were they supposed to do now?

Where did they go from here?

How was he supposed to handle this?

Dear Merlin, how could it hurt so much to lose something he'd never even had?

He didn't even realize he was having a panic attack until the distinct taste of a calming draught was being fed through his lips and Molly had finally, finally began to move if only to comfort him.

Molly…

The tears began to fall in earnest as he clung to his wife trying to comfort her whilst simultaneously trying to leach the same warmth from her arms.

Then in the midst of their grieving the healer cautiously interrupted them and somehow managed to deliver an even bigger blow.

The worst was yet to pass.

The baby still had to be delivered.

The next few hours were hell.

The procedure itself was relatively simple but the aftermath left him drained and just so very tired…

The baby had been 21 weeks, how Molly hadn't been showing was once again beyond him, maybe it was whatever prevented them from assuming two infants last time.

Apparently as the healer so helpfully informed them sex organs develop around 7 weeks.

Gender can be identified by 16-18 weeks.

A second daughter.

That's who he had lost.

Somehow it made it more real, more painful.

They'd lost a child; they'd lost a daughter, a daughter who had never even been around enough to be named.

They'd also been informed that they were under no legal obligation to register the child as they were under 24 weeks.

His magic exploded from him in a violet rush which toppled over one of the filing cabinets and shook the magically reinforced windows.

It appeared the room had been designed with the intention of being a place to deliver potentially devastating news hence the precautions taken against such forms of accidental magic.

Of course he wanted to name her! To acknowledge her!

Molly had recovered her voice at this outlandish suggestion enough to chew her out while he fought to regain his control.

Rather than be torn down further at the news they saw it as something to focus, this at the very least was something, perhaps the only thing they could do for their child.

It went unspoken between them but they didn't need words to come to this understanding.

They named her Ginevra.

Their little Ginny, the name Molly had confided in him that she had considered naming their first daughter before accepting his own proposal. Apparently it felt right to name their final child this.

Another part of the reason they were there for so long was Molly adamantly refusing not to leave until she had her tubes tied.

She refused to allow herself this sort of pain ever again, it was already a wound that would never heal, too suffer another would surely bleed them dry.

In the end the real thing that broke him was holding her.

They'd been given the option not to of course but they had both been in Gryffindor, there was no way they could refuse.

She was so small in his arms, so tiny… he'd been terrified she would look deformed or…or frightened like she had suffered…

Instead she looked so very peaceful, he could almost trick himself into thinking she was sleeping.

That was the moment he broke and something inside of him shriveled up.

A part of him detached from the scene and he handed over the child to Molly before stepping towards the new attendants to sort out the details.

Molly would be remaining here whilst he went home to inform Muriel so she could comfort Molly while he thought of something to tell the kids.

The kids…

Five of them were too young to understand, Percy may be turning five this year but he still didn't think he would truly grasp what had happened.

Merlin he didn't think Bill and Charlie would even fully comprehend… or maybe he just didn't want to tell them… He didn't want them to hurt, to feel this pain… nine going on ten, seven going on eight… how could they possibly be ready to handle such news?

But he would have to say something, this wasn't the sort of thing he could just cover up… well he could but he wouldn't.

He would not deny any of his children the right to be known, he would not hide a sibling from them like they were something to be ashamed of, he loved all his children equally.

All. Of. Them.

Once he had thought he could never imagine not loving any of his children.

Now a tiny, selfish part of his brain really wished he could. Oh he berated himself for thinking it but the thought never the less still crossed his mind, the small part of himself that would wish anything to be rid of this pain.

The small foot print they had magically molded as well as the memorial he was already planning on having arranged was all the morphine he was allowed and it just wasn't enough…

Stepping back into the fire place, he wished the flames were hot enough to repel the numbing cold that enveloped him as he prepared to make the journey home.

The ongoing war was far from his thoughts.

…

I am so sorry for doing this but the majority vote was against Ginny rather than for. I hope I didn't offend anyone, I tried to approach the topic as respectfully as I could and I did do some research on it to try and make it sound correct. This isn't just a way for me to throw in pointless angst, this was me portraying respect for a character who no longer served a purpose without completely neglecting her.

Better to have lived and died than never to have existed at all.

Now to attempt to reassure those of you who wanted Ginny.

First of all just because she isn't in this doesn't mean Septima's going to take her role. I noticed that some reviewers no matter if they were for or against Ginny being in the fic seemed to be under the impression that Septima is basically going to be Ginny but with a different name. This is not true. She is not a cuckoo bird nor do I have some masterplan to make her Mrs Potter or Mrs anyone really. I might consider ship teasing her with people but it is highly unlikely I would ever put her together with any one never mind Harry. Sure one sided crushes are possible but from Septima's point of view they are nothing but children to her.

Secondly to those worried about the chamber, I plan to slowly corrode away cannon before utterly demolishing it. This is me saying I've already thought of several idea's to deal with this my only issue is choosing the correct one. Who says Septima will retrieve the diary? I certainly didn't.

Thirdly, since to Septima most of her female friends (to some degree) will be mostly viewed as 'little sisters' in comparison I don't think Ginny is needed to give her that experience, her empathy has it covered.

Fourthly the thing about cannon is that Molly Weasley had no more children after Ginny I was under the presumption that this was because the only reason she kept on having more children in the first place was because she wanted a girl and therefore stopped when Ginny was born. A lot of people disagreed and thought even with Septima they might still try for one more. It is okay to think this and I promise you that despite my own opinion on the matter I am not deliberately excluding Ginny. I went with what the majority of the reviews approved of and this was my answer.

A lot of you couldn't see why she couldn't be born so I made her at very least exist, I know in some aspects this may seem crueler but it was as much of a compromise as I could come to without going against majority rules.

Any ways I know I said I would spend less time on the baby years but I felt like the whole 'dealing with Ginny issue' no matter the outcome needed its own chapter. Oh and the who limbic system being magical core I know isn't cannon however I have my own head cannon regarding this so that's what I'm going with, if magic is hereditary their surely there were other biological factors.


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